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Posted July 29, 2012 by admin in China Military News
China develops its E-2C: JZY-01 fix-ed wing ship-borne AEW demonstrator | China Defense Mashup
China develops its E-2C: JZY-01 fix-ed wing ship-borne AEW demonstrator | China Defense Mashup
2012-07-28
The images of JZY-01 demonstrator have indicate that China has mounted an early warning radar on a Y-7 cargo plane, which is smaller than the Y-8, and is using it for aerial reconnaissance too. The Y-7 weighs 21 tons and is similar to the U.S. Navy's E-2 Hawkeye and can be loaded on a carrier.
Besides, comparing JZY-01, Z-8 is still a backup rotocraft platform to become AEW helicopter for Chinese navy's aircraft carrier project.
A bar-shape array radar is installed outside the real cabine door of this Z-8 helicopter. Some analyzers believe that this sensor can provide low-to-medium altitude early warning for task fleet or even carrier strike group. In June 2009, Richard Fisher once reported that PLA is also known to be developing carrier combat support aircraft, that initially could focus on airborne early warning (AEW) and anti-submarine versions of the Changhe Z-8 helicopter.
Jiang Feng of the China Institute for International Strategic Studies said, "The objective of China's Navy in building an aircraft carrier is to bolster its aerial combat capabilities in the ocean that is crucial in protecting naval fleets. It is an inevitable trend to bolster maritime air combat capabilities and boost the capacity for three-dimensional strategies."